“Your father was a hard master,” they said. “Lighten the harsh labor demands and heavy taxes that your father imposed on us. Then we will be your loyal subjects.” [1 Kings 12.4]
Israel came to Rehoboam, Solomon's son, with the request above. In that request, Israel made a revealing statement about Solomon! He was a hard master. He imposed harsh labor demands and heavy taxes.
In fact, Rehoboam confirmed everything Israel said about Solomon was true.
Is it any wonder then that Solomon was so rich? This question is difficult because of a verse in the Bible that precedes it many years...
God said to Solomon, “Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you did not ask for wealth, riches, fame, or even the death of your enemies or a long life, but rather you asked for wisdom and knowledge to properly govern my people— I will certainly give you the wisdom and knowledge you requested. But I will also give you wealth, riches, and fame such as no other king has had before you or will ever have in the future!” [2 Chronicles 1.11-12]
So, was it Solomon's harsh labor requirements and heavy taxes that made him rich or was it the blessing of God?
How about this... Was God's blessing on Solomon also His curse on Israel?
These are all interesting questions for sure! However, we have to remember that people can change. Change in people can be good or change in people can be bad. As we have already seen in Solomon's case, he changed for the worse. So, what started off as God's blessings of riches, could easily have become something Solomon took upon himself as he began to worship the foreign gods of his foreign wives.
It is no stretch of imagination to me to see that as Solomon began to worship the foreign gods of his many foreign wives perhaps his wealth began to dwindle. And so, naturally Solomon, in a not-so-spirit-led state, began to demand more from the people.
That's the way it is when we quit depending on God for everything. We make impossible demands on ourselves and those around us.
It is no wonder then that Solomon's Ecclesiastes comes across like it does! Rather than enjoying the wisdom God had given him, Solomon was trying to make sense of it all on his own and all he could come up with was, "meaningless." sure, he knew enough to mention "God" but he had lost all bearing on eternity.
Oh, and as I read the last of Ecclesiastes in today's OYCB reading, I still didn't see anything that really looked like Solomon repented...
Father, thank You from continuing to speak to me from Your Word. Thank You for helping me to grow in understanding and knowledge of Your Word. Thank You for helping me see more clearly how it all ties together. Thank You!
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